Solar panel plant still underway

By Noi Mahoney, Managing Editor :
July 1, 2013

A $100 million solar-panel manufacturing facility that could add more than 400 new jobs is still on target to be completed by spring 2014, announced Nexolon America officials last week.

Site work on the 240,000-square-foot manufacturing facility is currently underway at Brooks City-Base in Southeast San Antonio.

“We are doing quite well and now we are prepared to begin construction,” said Scot Arey, executive vice president of Nexolon America.“By spring 2014, we will have a state-of-the-art facility.”

Nexolon America officials say they have begun installing drilled piers for the facility's sub-foundation. The next step will be to install electrical systems and water and wastewater lines at the site.

Precinct 4 Bexar County Commissioner Tommy Adkisson said Nexolon America could put South Texas on the map as a player in the solar energy market.

“Solar energy, which Texas has no lack of, means this is a no-brainer,” Adkisson said. “I don't know how New Jersey gets to be number two at solar energy. I understand California, but Texas not being number two in solar energy. There's something disturbing about that.”

Nexolon America officials note they have already created 40 new jobs in San Antonio at the firm's corporate office. They said the company will host job fairs in August and September to hire the expected 400 employees the site is to support. Nexolon America and its partners will also host a supplier fair July 23 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Pearl Brewery Studio, 200 E. Grayson St.

Brooks City-Base President and CEO Leo Gomez noted Nexolon America is part of the growth “of a vibrant community right here on the South Side.”

“Ten years ago (Brooks City-Base) was an Air Force base with 3,000 employees,” Gomez said. “Today, (Brooks City-Base) is within 100 full-time employees of having as many employees as the Air Force had 10 years ago.”

Despite Nexolon America's progress at Brooks City-Base, its parent company Nexolon Co. Ltd. posted a loss of $41 million for the first three months of this year. Nexolon lost a total of nearly $175 million over the most recent five quarters.

The company also ended March with less than $13 million in cash and equivalents on hand, down from the $19.5 million it had at the end of 2012.

Nexolon Co. Ltd's chairman, Woo Jeong Lee, has said Nexolon has set aside sufficient funds to go ahead with the Brooks City-Base project.